So, in one of the writing websites I am a member of (It’s called Critique Circle, and was an absolutely fantastic resource for me while I was zeroing in on my writing style and mechanics. I really recommend that community! It’s at www.critiquecircle.com. Sign up!), there was a thread that talked about the Terrible Writing Advice video series by Joseph Beaubien (Who has multiple social media accounts, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and his very own website!).

The first one I watched was about accepting critiques. They are phrased with an absolutely lovely level of sarcasm, and I found myself laughing heartily the whole way through. I immediately watched a few more, and decided that I’m going to try and share one very Friday! So, without further ado, here’s the first video, on Dystopias!

So that was fun! Now, for my thoughts on the video.

I totally agree. It’s WAY too easy to try to create a dystopian world without taking into account the things that would naturally break down or no longer exist, like schools, mail, social services, so on and so forth. A lot of dystopian stories I’ve read have street lights, police forces, mail services, just all set in some sort of post apocalyptic setting. This completely shatters immersion and suspension of disbelief for me. I don’t currently have any dystopian settings, but I do have an idea I’m kicking around for a post-apocalyptic steampunk setting, and there are many points in this video that I will need to keep in mind!

Let me know what you think in the comments, and go check out Terrible Writing Advice on YouTube! As always, thanks for reading!